Chapter 3

The sun was getting very close to the horizon, following its customary route before giving way to dusk, and then finally, to the night. Yet on the last steps of its trip, it rebelliously shone its rays, basking the beautiful countryside in reddish light, giving it a somewhat extravagant quality. Just before dipping below the horizon, the sun’s last rays showed a lone rider who was traveling across the countryside, gazing in every direction with wonder.

“Why the hell is this country called Wildlands?!”

Magnus asked himself for the tenth time in the last few days. He had crossed the questionable border between Nessia and Wildlands two days ago, and since then he had been enjoying the beauty of this tumultuous country. It reminded him of Ashad, with its meadows, woods, and streams, yet the plant life was definitely of a different kind here. Still, it seemed like a beautiful land, and he couldn’t reconcile the picture he had formed in his mind when he had first heard the name Wildlands with the sight he had before his eyes. He was expecting a wasteland, a desert ... or a dryish prairie at the most, yet in the last two days, all he had seen were blooming grasslands and forests.

Magnus stopped for a moment and looked around in every direction. The dusk was about to settle and he needed a decent camping spot. After a moment of deliberation, he found a clearing surrounded by trees. It would keep him reasonably hidden from sight. He dismounted and stretched his limbs, trying to shake off the ache in his muscles, especially in his legs and butt. Then, he cast a few earth and air spells all around the clearing to serve as a warning in case someone tried to sneak upon him.

“Although, I am yet to see a single human being in these ... Wildlands,” Magnus thought, settling down on the ground and taking some food out of his bag. Judging by the scarce information he had gotten in Nessia, Wildlands had plenty of tribes who often warred amongst themselves, and the only reason this nice land hadn’t been conquered by some other country was because the tribes would usually stop their quarrels to deal with the invader. If the stories were true, they were fierce warriors, honed by years of infighting.

“I wonder why they can’t find a way towards peace,” Magnus mused as he took a bite of dried meat and cheese. The last chance he had had for eating something warm was several days ago in an inn in Nessia, and he felt quite fed up with dry food. But it was all he had right now. He was about to take a second bite when he heard one of his alarm spells go off. He rose to his feet quickly, straining his eyes to see in the waning light of the day.

“There ... what...” Magnus thought as he started charging a spell by instinct.

THWACK!

The crossbow made a distinct sound as it launched its deadly projectile towards Magnus. On pure instinct, Magnus released his spell instantly and his lightning bolt flew straight into the trees...

A jolt of pain shook his body, radiating from his left shoulder, as a muffled cry sounded from the trees. Magnus turned his head and saw a crossbow bolt lodged in the flesh. The bolt had likely stopped when it hit bone, and it was now protruding from his left shoulder. Anticipating pain, he gritted his teeth and pulled at the bolt, yanking it out of his body with a cry of pain. Blood flowed in rivulets out of the wound, but Magnus paid no attention. A cold shiver ran through his body as his brain processed the sight before his eyes. The head of the bolt was blue.

“Lenerium...” Magnus thought as the implications became clear. This was no bandit attack; this was an assassination attempt...

Magnus walked slowly towards the trees, expecting any moment to feel the surge of energies in his body, indicating that his brain was working on mending the shoulder wound. Yet, nothing was happening...

“The last time, my magic returned the second lenerium was removed from my arm...” Magnus thought, nearing the place where he heard a cry.

“Maybe if it penetrates my body ... or maybe if it touches my blood it takes longer for the magic to return?”

He felt a pang of worry in his gut. He barely knew anything about the strange metal. Yet he did know it was extremely expensive and quite brittle, so only a fool would use it for a crossbow bolt ... unless one wanted to kill a mage.

Magnus made a few more steps and then spotted his attacker. He was lying face down on the ground and Magnus approached him cautiously, straining his eyes to spot any kind of movement in the receding light of the day. Then, he realized his caution was unnecessary. The assassin was dead.

“So much for the answers...” Magnus thought, turning the body over and searching through the pockets.

“Nothing...” Magnus exclaimed with a hint of frustration. The man was probably just a paid assassin anyway. The pain in his arm reminded Magnus of his wound and of the fact that his healing wasn’t working...

“I’ll just have to do it the old-fashioned way...” Magnus thought, walking back towards his horse. Rummaging through his bags, he found some clean cloth and miraculously, some of the healing ointment that Fiona used to buy from her sources. It must have been among his things since before he developed his healing abilities. He rubbed it over his wound, grunting in pain and hoping the ointment would work. Then he bandaged the wound carefully and sat on the ground sighing heavily.

“I must have stirred some attention after all...” He thought, realizing the implications. Instead of going west in a straight line from elven lands, he had chosen to travel south, following the same way he had used to get to elven lands, through Fluvia and its capital Charobny, then through Vistania’s Highfort and then finally heading for Nessia. He had traveled through every major city that was even remotely on his trajectory, hoping to find some clue, some information, just in case the directions he had gotten from the Seer were no good. He had asked questions, describing Lina and watching for clues on the faces of people he had asked, but without result. Yet somebody had obviously been rattled enough by his questions to want him dead, and it seemed that same somebody had spared no expenses.

“I wish they had tried something BEFORE I went through three whole countries ... Then I would at least have some idea where to go and poke ... Now, after asking questions in so many places, I have no way of knowing where and whom did I provoke...” Magnus thought, stretching on the ground.

“No ... I must continue west and hope that the Seer was right. Hopefully, my magic will be back after a night’s sleep.”

Magnus woke up, feeling a throbbing pain in his shoulder. He groaned, realizing he was still cut off from magic. He was getting worried.

“I am not sure if I will be able to accomplish much without it ... but I must press on. I am still a week or two away from the coast and plenty can happen in that time. I really hope it is just a matter of time before my magic returns...,” Magnus thought while he was reapplying bandages to his shoulder. The ointment had clearly helped, but not as much as it usually did. It all seemed so weird. He rubbed some more of it on his wound and covered it with a clean bandage.

After another day of riding, he stopped at dusk and was somewhat relieved to see the wound was healing. There was still some pain and discomfort, but it felt much better. If only he could say the same about his magic ... He felt so strange and so empty without it. The world looked so different to his eyes now. He was used to seeing the energies flowing everywhere, and now everything seemed so static and so ... bland.

Magnus ate in silence and then stretched out on the ground. The sleep wouldn’t come easy to his troubled mind. His search for Lina seemed a hundred times more complicated now unless he got his magic back. Maybe Fiona would know how to deal with his problem? Or maybe the mages at Vistania’s court?

“I am not turning back now ... I must hope for the best,” Magnus thought as sleep finally overwhelmed his tired body.

In the morning, he was once again disappointed by the absence of magic. He would have to get used to the feeling. His shoulder was nicely healing, at least. Looking up, he realized he had overslept since the sun was well above the rim. He stretched out, preparing for another day of riding...

“I swear it, when I find Lina and get her to safety, I will not move from one place for a year ... I really hope she is all right. It has been so long since she was taken, and if they hurt her, I’ll...”

Magnus’s train of thought was interrupted by the sudden realization that he wasn’t alone. Troubled by his thoughts, he hadn’t even noticed a group that entered the clearing where he was camping. Magnus blinked in surprise. There were five of them, and they were all women ... and they all had their weapons out. Magnus raised his hand in salute.

“Hello, I wish-”

“Not a step further, you scum!” a woman with braided hair said. Her accent sounded strange to Magnus’ ears but he could understand her. He felt his body tense in anticipation of conflict.

“There are five of them, one armed with a sword, three with a spear, and one with a bow and presumably a knife. The way they are holding the weapons though ... Only the braided one seems to have experience with arms ... I can take them, yet I doubt I can do it without hurting some of them...” Magnus thought, assessing the situation. His sword was lying sheathed on the ground, only a few paces away. On the other hand, they were standing between him and his horse, thus making the eventual undignified retreat impossible ... He saw the obvious tension on their faces, the nervous and clumsy clutching of weapons, and a hint of fear on some of those faces. They were trying hard to hide it.

“I can’t simply surrender either ... I mean, gods only know what their intentions are ... What an absolutely delightful moment to be without magic,” Magnus thought, sighing inwardly. Not having his powers had left him with far fewer options...

“I don’t wish you any harm ... I am simply passing through,” Magnus said, forcing calm in his voice.

“Of course you are passing through ... on your way to report to the slavers, right?!” the braided woman said with contempt.

“I am not working for slavers! I am also searching for someone taken by them and-”

“Save your breath, scum!” the braided woman spat. “Save your lies for someone who believes in them!”

“Damn it, this won’t go well ... What do I do here? They are all women, gods help me, and I resent the possibility to harm them, yet I can’t just give myself up either ... What would happen with my search, what would happen to Lina?” Magnus thought, gritting his teeth in frustration. He had already worked out a path of attack, but he couldn’t make himself do it.

“Maybe I could just rush those three to the left and then go straight for the horse ... I need to be really fast-”

His thoughts were interrupted once again when he spotted a hint of movement behind the big woman who was standing to the left. Two inquisitive eyes emerged behind the woman’s legs for a few seconds only, but for Magnus, it was more than enough. He breathed out, releasing the tension from his muscles. Deep inside, he was thankful that the decision had been taken from him.

“All right, I surrender!” Magnus said in a level voice, raising his hands high. The women moved cautiously, circling him slowly until he felt the tip of a blade under his chin.

“Just give me a reason!” the braided woman hissed, watching him with intensity and hatred. Magnus ignored her look, focusing instead on the little girl of no more than eight or nine. She was looking at him with curiosity and just a hint of apprehension. He wanted to smile reassuringly, but it was hard with a sword pressed at his neck.

“Ana, we need some rope,” the braided woman said. The big woman nodded.

“Leah, search his bags for rope,” Ana ordered to a dark-haired girl. The girl hurried towards Magnus’ horse and started searching through his bags.

“I got it!” she exclaimed and brought the rope, which they used to tie Magnus’ hands behind his back.

“He is all tied now, nothing to fear Mona,” the braided woman said looking at the little girl with affection.

“Oh Dinah, I am not afraid of him ... I don’t think he is a bad man,” the little girl said, making Magnus show a hint of a smile. The braided woman, Dinah, scowled at him and then she shook her head.

“They are all the same ... Now let’s move! Leah, help Mona onto the horse, she gets a ride to the village!” Dinah said and then smiled at the expression of happiness on Mona’s face.

The group set off northwards. Leah was leading the horse that Mona was riding, and Dinah and Ana were discussing something and occasionally glancing behind to check up on Magnus. Magnus was walking behind them, flanked by the two other women who had their spears at the ready.

“There is something strange about all this ... I’ve never seen women in the role of warriors, with the exception of Elves, of course. But that’s not the weird part ... The way they move, the way they held their weapons before ... They are clearly not comfortable with those weapons, so why are they acting as warriors then?”

They were walking for some time and he had the time to observe them more closely. The braided woman, Dinah, was clearly the leader of the group. She was somewhere in her early thirties probably and she was the only one who could have passed as a warrior. She had an athletic body and Magnus had to admit she was attractive in a primal kind of way. The big woman, Ana, was a tall brunette with a voluptuous body, somewhere in her late thirties or early forties. She was an eye candy in her own way, with her rounded curves and pretty face. She seemed to have a degree of authority in the group as well. Leah, the dark-haired girl, was a relatively small and very cute girl of about twenty. She was by far the least warrior-looking. The two women flanking Magnus were somewhere in their thirties, dark-haired, and also without a warrior build and posture. And of course, there was the sweet and inquisitive little girl Mona. All of them had somewhat darker skin and were all dressed in leather pants and shirts.

“They probably grow cattle ... That is by far the most common source of leather and I doubt they are hunting many deer in these lands. There are more grasslands here than forests...”

The sight of smoke rising above the bushes interrupted Magnus’ musing. They had reached the village.

Magnus saw a large number of tents made of cattle skin, strewn across the land without some particular order. Perched on Magnus’ horse, Mona smiled and waved to the villagers who watched the group stride through the village. The sight of Magnus, whose hands were tied behind his back, had attracted a lot of curiosity and a few angry looks as well. But one thing struck Magnus the most. He had seen plenty of people looking at them and asking questions from Dinah and Ana, yet the woman-to-man ratio seemed to be no less than ten to one. It was bizarre.

“I don’t think I have ever seen such disparity in numbers ... What the hell happened here?” Magnus thought, his curiosity piqued by the strange sight. The group strolled to a big tent in the middle of the village.

“That is quite a catch you got there, Dinah,” a young woman said, exiting the big tent. She was looking at Magnus with unhidden curiosity, and Magnus couldn’t help looking back at her. She was quite a beauty. Relatively tall, dark-haired, and with a striking face, she gave off an air of authority, yet she couldn’t have been older than Magnus...

“She must be some kind of chieftain ... I’ve always thought that tribes like this one picked their leaders based on their strength and their warrior abilities. After fighting Lanaya, I would be a fool to underestimate female warriors, but somehow, I don’t think she is really one ... And besides, Elves are a special case as their natural magic makes them faster and more agile than humans,” Magnus thought as he held the chieftainess’ eyes. On his way towards the village, he was thinking about possible ways to escape, but now, he felt his curiosity overwhelm his desire for freedom. There was some kind of story here.

“What is your name, stranger?” she asked, still holding his gaze.

“My name is Magnus.”

“So, Magnus ... What are you doing trespassing the lands of the Owl tribe?”

“I didn’t know I was trespassing ... I was on my way to the coast...”

“Why?”

“I am searching for someone ... someone who was probably taken by the slavers. I was going to demand some answers from them,” Magnus said with intensity in his voice.

“He is lying, Theia! He is their spy!” Dinah spat.

“I am not a spy!”

“Am I supposed to believe that you were going to demand answers from slavers? You, a lone man who was captured by a small group of women?” Theia said, raising an eyebrow. There were chuckles from everywhere around them. Magnus gritted his teeth in frustration.

“Hey, I surrendered because I didn’t want to harm them! I am also a mage but I lost my powers on the way! Yeah ... That would just prompt another round of laughter,” Magnus thought, unsure how to reply. His silence wasn’t leaving a good impression.

“Take him to one of the empty tents and set some guards, Dinah. Let’s see if a day without food will make him rethink his answers,” Theia said. She turned away from him, but not before giving him a contemptuous look.

Magnus spent his day sitting in a tent with his hands tied and listening to his stomach rumble in protest. He was still conflicted between seeking ways to escape and his curiosity. He was debating the reasons for and against for the umpteenth time when he suddenly tensed, straining his ears. He could have sworn someone was calling him.

“Magnus!”

This time he was sure. The hushed voice was coming from behind him, outside the tent...

“Magnus, do you hear me?!”

“Huh, Mona is that you?”

“Yes! Magnus, are you a spy for the slavers?”

“No, Mona ... I said the truth ... I am searching for my sister who was taken by the slavers...” Magnus whispered, moving close to the back ‘wall’ of the tent. The cattle skin wasn’t proving as much of a sound barrier.

“I believe you! I have a good feeling about you, you know? I am smart that way!”

Magnus smiled. At least somebody believed him, even if it was just a little girl.

“Mona, you might get in trouble ... There are guards outside, they might hear you...” Magnus whispered.

“Pfh, I get in trouble all the time! I am going to find a way to smuggle some food for you.”

“Thanks, Mona, but please don’t get in trouble over it, I can manage...”

“Don’t worry!” Mona said and Magnus could hear her sneak away from the tent.

As the evening neared, Magnus was finding himself increasingly bored. It was probably the hardest thing about his captivity.

“At least I am not hungry anymore...” Magnus thought with a smile. Mona had managed to make a small hole in the back wall of the tent, near the bottom, and she used it to push some meat and bread for Magnus. It felt funny eating the food like that since his hands were tied behind his back, but he wasn’t going to complain.

“She seems a proper troublemaker ... I remember Lina being the same at her age ... Oh Lina, will I ever find you...”

Magnus heard voices outside, and soon he saw Dinah enter the tent, followed by two male warriors. Their faces were grim and Magnus saw hostility in their postures.

“Ah, spy ... The night is coming, so rather than keeping people awake to guard you, I will tie you to the ground instead,” Dinah said, her eyes glinting. She was licking her lips unconsciously. Magnus remained silent. It took some time for them to put pegs into the ground and secure them, but before the night took its hold, Magnus found himself tied spread-eagle on the ground. At least they let him drink some water and do his business before they tied him down. Still, it wasn’t going to be a comfortable night.

A while later, Magnus saw his tent flap move and Dinah stepped inside, holding a small torch in her hands. She placed it in a holder at the side of the tent and then sat down next to Magnus, her face showing hunger and arousal.

“Well, spy ... I decided to give you a rare honor tonight. You are going to pleasure me...” Dinah said, reaching out to grab Magnus’ cock through his pants. She gave him a feral smile. “Yes, this is a nice cock indeed...”

“No.”

“What?”

“I said no.”

“You think you are in a position to choose?!” she said, anger showing in her face. In the spooky light of the torch, Magnus noticed a scar that went across the left side of her neck, ending just behind her left ear. He didn’t notice it before.

“I intend to force myself upon you! You think you can stop me?!” she said, her words sounding like a challenge. Magnus shrugged.

“You won’t be able to do anything.”

“Is that so...” she said, pulling his pants down to reveal his cock. She started caressing his balls and soon enough his cock started hardening, showing itself in all its glory. It had been a while since Magnus had a chance for some relief, and his cock was responding with eagerness.

“Ohh, that is really nice...” Dinah said, removing her clothes. Her athletic body was quite attractive. Her breasts were relatively small, but her ass and strong shapely legs more than made up for it.

“Oh no, you won’t ... In a different situation, I would be more than happy to do it, but I will not be forced into anything!” Magnus thought, closing his eyes and reaching out for his focus. Every time he needed perfect concentration, he would go to his favorite meadow in his mind.

“What are you doing?!” Dinah exclaimed as his cock started deflating. She started caressing it with her hands, she even knelt down and rubbed her pussy all over his cock, but his cock remained flaccid.

“You are doing this somehow!” she hissed, putting a knife under his throat. Magnus gave her his best icy stare.

“What is it, you prefer men, do you?!” she said angrily.

“No.”

“So why are you soft then?! Am I too ugly for you?!” she said, visibly upset. Magnus could tell it would be easy to provoke her with the right words. Maybe she would make a mistake then, maybe he could be free very soon ... Yet he couldn’t make himself do it. He could tell there was some kind of pain in her. He took a deep breath.

“No, you are perfectly attractive, but I won’t be forced into doing anything ... And I have a way of making my body respond to my wishes,” Magnus said, looking her in the eyes. She held his eyes for some time and then responded in a raspy voice.

“Very well ... But you might regret this ... spy,” she spat, putting her clothes on and leaving the tent. As the darkness took over the tent once again, Magnus sighed in frustration.

“Damn it, I could have really used some release...”

Morning came after a not so comfortable night for Magnus. As he was dreading yet another day of this passivity, the tent flap opened to let in the same group from yesterday. All except for little Mona.

“Time to be useful, spy,” Dinah said as they untied him and then retied his hands behind his back while two of them held spears under his throat.

“Hungry?” Dinah teased him, but Magnus didn’t reply. He did accept some water.

“Where are we going?”

“You will see soon. Time to put those bulging muscles to some use. It is a chance for you to repay our generous hospitality,” Dinah said, chuckling.

The group set off towards the southwest. Even though he would likely be put to work somewhere, Magnus was quite thankful for the opportunity to stretch his limbs after spending so much time confined to a tent. As they walked, he noticed his sword buckled at Dinah’s hip. A regular, steel longsword would probably be too heavy for her to wield effectively, yet his searite sword, a present from the elven queen, was far lighter. He suddenly realized that this group of women was probably a scouting party, meant to check the borders of their land every day.

“They must be feeling quite safe if they let a little girl come with them yesterday ... Although ... I barely saw any men in the village this morning, so I can only assume they are scouting much farther out, which is probably why this group feels so confident. They assume one of the outer scouts would warn them in time about any enemy activity...” Magnus thought.

They walked for some time and Magnus thought he spotted a river in the direction they were headed. They would soon be upon it.

“This is the place,” Dinah said as they reached the riverbank. The stream was relatively fast and the riverbank was high enough to make the approach to the water somewhat difficult. He saw that a long barricade of a sort had been built in one place, meant to create a stretch of land at the bank where cattle could reach the water and drink without the danger of river pulling them away. The barricade was in an obvious state of disrepair.

“You can see that the barricade needs to be fixed and there are plenty of large stones down there. I will untie you, but you can be sure I will run you through if you try anything,” Dinah said menacingly.

“Come on, for such a strong boy this will be child’s play,” she said mockingly. She was untying his hands while the rest of the group held their weapons ready. Magnus sighed.

“I am getting seriously conflicted ... How long should I continue this charade? Bah, at least I can do something useful here, and I suppose I could use some stretching as well.”

Magnus started removing his shirt, turning briefly to smirk at their poorly concealed, lusty looks. For some reason, there was a serious shortage of men in their village, and Magnus knew they were feeling a certain ache. He took off his shirt, slowly, giving them a show and deliberately stretching and flexing his arms and chest.

“Right then, I’ll climb down and start working,” Magnus said and slid down to the bank.

“We will be here, watching you closely, so don’t try anything stupid,” Dinah said in a threatening voice.

Magnus worked for a couple of hours, moving the large stones and placing them where needed, strengthening the barricade. He wasn’t sure he would be able to finish everything today as the barricade was quite long. Occasionally, he would look up to see if they were checking on him, and they did gawk at him in the beginning, but for some time now, he wasn’t able to see anyone above. Truth be told, he couldn’t see farther than several paces as the slope hid everything beyond, so he just assumed they were sitting in the shade somewhere close.

“I need a break!” Magnus said after a while.

“Did you hear me? I need to catch my breath for a while. Some food would be nice as well, or do you expect me to work without any food?” Magnus repeated but there was no answer once again.

He climbed up, finding only his shirt. He looked in all directions, perplexed, but they were nowhere to be seen. He put his shirt on and sat down to think for a moment.

“Is this some kind of test? Are they watching me to see if I will try to run? Do they really expect me to sit here and wait for them to show up?”

He got up, deciding to go look around. He was getting tired of these games. Maybe he should just rush and overpower one of them and take the weapon. He sighed, knowing it would be hard to avoid hurting them ... Why was there no trace of them? It made no sense for them to simply let him go, not after making such a big fuss over him being a slavers’ spy.

“I am beginning to see why this is called Wildlands ... Although, Madlands would probably be a more suitable name...” Magnus thought and then suddenly tensed. He could hear voices ... male voices.

Crouching down, he started sneaking in the direction of the voices. As he was coming closer, the voices became more distinct. He could hear two or three male voices and one female voice. Dinah’s voice. He sneaked up as close as possible, hiding behind a stretch of tall bushes...

“Well, this time Adar won’t be able to say we didn’t bring him anything, eh boys?” A big man with a scar on his face said, prompting laughter from his companions.

“We should get rid of these two though, they are clearly too old to be sold as slaves. Adar told us that only young ones can be sold...,” a skinny man with braided hair said.

“We could have some fun with them first...” another warrior said, grabbing his groin. They laughed at the terror and disgust on women’s faces.

Magnus took in the scene in front of him. Dinah, Ana, Leah, and the other two women whose names he didn’t know, were kneeling on the ground, their hands tied behind them. Magnus could see Ana and Leah were injured, and Dinah had a split lip and a bruise on her face. Standing above them were five men, warriors, by their posture. Looking at their clothing, Magnus could tell they belonged to some different tribe. They carried swords and axes and Magnus saw his own sword buckled at the big man’s hip. This group must have ambushed and overpowered the women. Magnus took a deep breath, his mind going through the whole situation. He could just leave, and it would probably be the smart choice ... These women were his captors, after all. He slowly sneaked away, then rose up and walked towards the group, his face showing a confident smile.